Astronomical Summer Begins on Sunday — The Longest Day of the Year
On June 21, 2026, at 11:24 AM, the Northern Hemisphere enters astronomical summer, bringing the longest day — in Riga, daylight lasts 17 hours and 52 minutes.
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Sunday, June 21, marks the start of astronomical summer at 11:24 AM local time in Latvia. This is the moment of the summer solstice, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
In Riga, the day length reaches 17 hours and 52 minutes. Across Latvia, it varies from 17 hours 33 minutes in the south of Augšdaugava Municipality to 18 hours 12 minutes in the north of Valmiera Municipality. That is roughly 11 hours longer than the shortest day of the year during the winter solstice.
Sunrise in Riga occurred at 4:29 AM, and sunset will be at 10:21 PM. The earliest sunrise was at 4:10 AM in Pededze Parish, Alūksne Municipality, while the latest sunrise was at 4:48 AM on the coast of Dienvidkurzeme Municipality. The earliest sunset is expected at 9:58 PM near the Belarus border, and the latest sunset at 10:36 PM in Ventspils Municipality by the sea.
After the solstice, days will gradually become shorter. On June 22, the day will be five seconds shorter, by St. Peter's Day (June 29) five minutes shorter, and after a month, daylight will have decreased by one hour.
Astronomical summer lasts until September 22. Meteorological summer, however, began on June 1 this year, as the average air temperature for the first ten days reached at least +15°C, and will end when the temperature consistently drops below +15°C.
